Beware the Frozen Heart
by EsmeAmelia
Summary: AU. When "love will thaw" doesn't work, Elsa leaves for good. Anna is crowned queen and she and Kristoff have twin babies - one of whom inherits his aunt's ice powers.
1. Chapter 1

AN: Frozen belongs to Disney and not me. Anyway, I've had this AU idea for a long time and now I'm actually writing it. I love Frozen as it is, but I wonder what might have happened if "love will thaw" didn't work. Also, the movie bears almost no resemblance to the Andersen fairytale it's based on, and The Snow Queen was one of my favorite fairytales growing up, so this story will include some elements from that story. So . . . yeah.

Oh, and in case you were wondering, yes, my Star Wars fics are alive and well.

"Beware the Frozen Heart"

By EsmeAmelia

Chapter 1

"Love will thaw . . . love will thaw . . . "

Elsa closed her eyes, slowing her breath, concentrating on filling her mind with love. "Love will thaw . . ." She imagined her sister's face smiling at her, the two of them laughing together as children. "Love will thaw . . ." She remembered her parents holding her when she was little, back before they became afraid to touch her.

"Love will thaw . . . love will thaw . . . love will thaw . . ."

She felt warm inside. Yes, yes, it had to be working, love was the key . . .

But when she opened her eyes, nothing had changed. The air was still cold and the snow and ice still covered the world and Anna was still looking expectantly at her. The white streak was still in her hair – that permanent reminder of how Elsa had almost killed her.

"Elsa?"

Elsa's breath quickened at her sister's voice, heaving as if the cold affected her like it did others. "Anna . . ." Her eyes were welling up. ". . . I'm sorry." A tear made it halfway down her cheek before it froze, biting into her skin.

"Elsa . . ." Anna's hands were instantly on her sister's shoulders. "It's all right, we'll figure something else out."

Elsa pried Anna's hands off her as the snow once more started swirling around them. "No, no." She swallowed, but it did nothing to moisten her dry throat. "Anna . . . I have to leave."

"WHAT?" Anna looked like she had been punched in the stomach. "Elsa, you tried that already and it didn't work." Again she grabbed her sister's hand. "Now come on, we'll figure this out together . . ."

"No, I _can't!"_ Elsa shouted. "Don't you _see,_ Anna, so long as I'm here the winter will continue . . ."

"But you _already left_ and it didn't stop the winter!"

Elsa took a deep breath, blinking her way through the tears, staring into Anna's heartbroken eyes. "I didn't go _far_ enough away. Maybe . . . maybe if I go so far away that no one will ever find me, my effect on Arandelle will wear off."

Now Anna's eyes were welling up in shock. "No . . . no . . . Elsa, you can't mean that . . ."

"I'm sorry."

How she wanted to hug her sister goodbye and assure her that everything would be all right, but she could make no such promise. She backed away, slowly at first, then increasing her speed as she moved further away. She heard Anna screaming her name as Kristoff held her back, tears streaming down her face.

"Please Anna," she whispered, "this is for everyone's good."

With that, she turn around and ran away, a snowfall whipping around her.

. . .

"Elsa! Elsa! ELSA!"

Anna desperately kept crying out as her sister disappeared into the blowing snow, wrestling weakly against Kristoff's grasp. "ELSA!"

"Anna," Kristoff said in a voice that sounded like he was trying to convince himself as well as her, "she knows what she's doing."

"But Elsa . . ."

"She's doing this for _you!_ " Kristoff exclaimed in a near-shout. "You and the kingdom. If she doesn't leave, everyone will freeze to death, do you want that?"

Anna sank to her knees as Kristoff let go of her, babbling her sister's name over and over, barely noticing Kristoff gently rubbing her back or Olaf waddling up to them.

"Hey Anna," the snowman said in a voice far too cheery for Anna's mood, "don't lose hope. Why, I'll bet Elsa will be right back as soon as summer comes back!"

Anna couldn't respond. She could only stare out into the snow after the sister she had only just gotten back only to lose once again.

Elsa was gone.

. . .

Two days later, Anna was crowned Queen of Arandelle. While she was younger than was traditional for the kingdom to crown their rulers, it was decided that given the situation, they needed a leader to look up to as soon as possible. Her stomach felt like it was in a double knot as the deacon placed the crown on her head – the crown that should be Elsa's. Of course, she had always known that there was a possibility that she could become ruler one day if anything happened to Elsa, but she had never imagined that it would actually _happen._

She gulped as she faced her new subjects, along with the many guests from other kingdoms who were still stranded far away from their homes, looking to her for guidance. "E-everyone," she managed to say after gulping again, "I know this wasn't what you came here for." She tried to ignore the Duke of Weselton glaring at her. "I'm not the queen you expected to see crowned, b-but I'm the queen nonetheless . . . and as your queen, I promise that those of you who are our guests _will_ get home." She stood up a little straighter, imitating Elsa's posture at her own coronation. "We will all work together – we'll break through the ice and free your ships and we'll repair the ships that were damaged in the ice." Her voice grew louder as she spoke. "It will be a lot of work, but I promise you, we _will_ survive this. I don't know when the snow will melt, but I know we won't give up."

There was silence for a moment, two moments, three moments, then Kristoff started applauding, slowly followed by the rest of the audience – even the Duke of Weselton gave a bit of reluctant applause, but Anna hardly heard it. _This isn't right,_ her mind kept saying. _You're not the queen, Elsa is._

She inhaled through her teeth, trying desperately to silence her mind. It didn't matter now that Elsa was the true queen; it didn't matter that she felt like a fake queen. What mattered was the wellbeing of the kingdom, and whether she liked it or not, she was the one in charge of that now.

. . .

As time passed, Arandelle gradually grew warmer. Under Anna's guidance, the citizens and guests managed to cut through the slowly-melting ice and the guests could finally go home. Hans was sent home in chains, much to Anna's relief, though she would have liked to give him a good punch before he left.

As for the citizens of Arandelle, they adapted. They gathered whatever edible plants poked their way through the snow, hunted, and increased trade with other kingdoms. The fjord finally melted completely, ensuring their survival.

The snow, however, never went away, and Elsa never returned.


	2. Chapter 2

AN: Thanks for reviewing!

"Beware the Frozen Heart"

By EsmeAmelia

Chapter 2

 _Two years later._

"Twins . . ." Anna breathed as the midwife wiped her forehead. "I can't believe it . . ."

"Believe it, m'lady," the midwife chuckled. "A fine and healthy boy and girl they are, too."

Anna gazed over at the other end of the bedroom, where her husband was helping the nurse clean the babies up. Her entire lower half still ached and she still couldn't stop herself from panting, but her babies were wailing, which meant the whole ordeal had been a success.

If only their aunt could be here.

Anna could easily imagine what Elsa would say, _"Wow, I never thought I'd see my baby sister deliver two babies in a row,"_ or something like that. They'd have a laugh together before she'd have to nurse the babies.

"Hey darling," Kristoff quipped as he practically danced up to the bed with their little son in his arms, "come meet our baby boy."

"Awww," Anna murmured as she ran her finger down the baby's tiny cheek.

"And here's your daughter!" the nurse announced as she placed the baby girl in her mother's arms.

Anna couldn't keep her breath steady as she looked from one baby to the other and back again. The girl had a downy bit of wet brown hair while the boy had little tufts of blond hair. Both had blue eyes, though Anna heard that the eye color could change after a little while.

"Wow . . ." she whispered.

"Yeah . . . wow . . ." Kristoff whispered back, kissing his wife's sweaty forehead. "Well, why doesn't the girl's mommy name her?"

"Elsa," Anna said without hesitation.

"What?"

"All right, we can call her Elsie so as not to confuse her with her aunt, but her full name will be Elsa."

Kristoff raised an eyebrow, but he still nodded in approval. "All right." He leaned over to get a better look at his daughter. "Hi Elsie," he said in a singsongy voice, "I'm your daddy."

Anna giggled. "All right, now why doesn't Daddy name the boy?"

"Oh Anna, come on, I don't have any ideas, you can name her."

"You sure?"

"Yes."

Anna smiled down at the baby boy. "All right, then let's name him after his daddy."

"What?" Kristoff exclaimed again, his face reddening slightly.

"We can call him Kris for short," Anna quickly added. "That is, if it's okay with you."

"Well . . ." Kristoff's mouth slowly stretched into a grin, "all right, if you insist."

The midwife chuckled at the couple. "Prince Kris and Princess Elsie," she said in a proud voice. "I'm sure they have bright futures ahead of them."

. . .

Kristoff knew the babies probably wouldn't let their parents sleep through the night, but it still came as a jolt when the loud cry suddenly woke him from a sound sleep. "Uuuugghhh," he groaned. "I guess I've got to get the baby."

Anna gave a loud yawn. "No . . . no . . . it's all right . . . I'll get her," she slurred.

"You already know which cry is Elsie's?"

"I'm the mommy," Anna mumbled as she pushed herself out of bed. "I'm supposed to know."

Kristoff opened his eyes long enough to see the beautiful silhouette of his wife's bed hair cross the window before closing them again. "All right, just let me know if you need me."

"I will."

Within a minute, he heard Elsie's cry settle down as Anna talked to her in a high voice. He was just thinking that the sweet sound of her talking to the baby would lull him back to sleep when all of a sudden she cried out, instantly waking him up.

"Kristoff?" she called in a low, stunned voice. "Kristoff . . . you've got to come in here."

Abandoning all thoughts of sleep, he leapt out of bed and stumbled across the hall to the babies' room, where he found Anna standing with Elsie in her arms and staring and Kris's cradle.

"Anna?" Kristoff gasped. "Anna, what is it?"

Anna merely pointed at their son's cradle. Kristoff's chest tightened as he slowly made his way to the baby, fearful for a moment that he would find their child dead, but no, Kris was sleeping peacefully in his cradle.

Where the blankets were covered in ice.

. . .

Several minutes passed during which neither parent said anything and the only movement was Anna sitting in a rocking chair so Elsie could nurse. Her breast hurt as the baby's hungry mouth yanked at it, but she hardly noticed the pain. She could only stare at her son's cradle where the baby boy lay blissfully unaware of the difficult future that would undoubtedly be ahead of him.

"Anna . . ." Kristoff finally forced out.

Anna gulped. "Kristoff, whatever it is you're thinking, _stop thinking it!"_

"But Anna . . ."

Anna shot a glare up at her husband. "My parents kept me and Elsa separated when we were growing up thinking they could keep me safe and help her control her powers – but guess what, they didn't! None of them even told me she _had_ powers! Elsa grew up isolated and now she's _gone_ because of that!" She took a deep breath, concentrating on using her "queen voice," as Kristoff called it. "Kris is _not_ gonna grow up like that."

"But what about Elsie?"

Anna slowly lowered her gaze to her little daughter, still sucking contently on her breast. "She's not gonna grow up oblivious like I did."

Kristoff put a hand on her shoulder. "And what if Kris hurts her like Elsa hurt you?"

"He won't."

"You don't know that."

"Well Kris won't grow up so afraid of himself like Elsa was. We'll raise him as much as we can like a normal child."

"But he's _not_ normal."

Anna shot another glare up at her husband. " _Don't_ say that! Treating Elsa as not normal was exactly what drove her away. I'm _not_ gonna make the mistake my parents made."

With a sigh, Kristoff ran his finger down his wife's cheek. "Well maybe I could talk to Grandpoppy and the trolls . . ."

"We don't need their help," Anna interrupted. "We just have to raise our son with lots of love."

At that moment, Elsie released herself from her mother's breast with a tiny burp, freeing Anna to wipe her little mouth and return her to her cradle. Once the baby girl was all tucked in again, Anna turned her attention back to the little boy, still sound asleep, his little chest rising and falling under the icy blankets. After gathering up her courage for a few seconds, she gently placed her fingertip on her son's cheek, finding that his skin was as cold as if her finger were pressing into flexible ice. Her free hand instinctively went to her own heart, pressing down on the spot where her sister had struck her with the blow that nearly killed her.

No, no, she couldn't think about that now. Things would be different for her son, they had to be. "It's all right, Kris," she whispered. "Mommy's here, and Mommy's gonna take care of you. I promise."


	3. Chapter 3

AN: Thanks for reading and reviewing! Sorry it took me almost a year to continue this – grad school and Star Wars fics delayed it.

"Beware the Frozen Heart"

By EsmeAmelia

Chapter 3

 _Eight years later._

"Okay kids, bedtime."

"Aw Moooom," Kris groaned in the exaggerated way kids groaned at bedtime, his lips pouting as he threw down the jacks ball and it went bouncing across the floor. "Can't we go skating first?"

"We can go skating tomorrow," said Anna.

"Promise?" Elsie asked, making her blue eyes as round as she could.

"Yes, promise – but only if you get ready for bed right now."

The twins immediately leapt to their feet and went running upstairs, leaving their parents to laugh after them. As Anna gazed after them, she felt her husband's hand on her shoulder. She looked over to see Kristoff grinning at her. "It's your turn to tell their story, sweetheart," he said.

Anna gave an awkward grin. "So, my turn to make up something on the spot and hope it's good enough?"

"Yup."

"It would be nice if they still liked to be _read_ to." She poked her husband's shoulder. "I blame you for that."

"Hey, I got tired of reading _The Princess and the Pea_ all the time and decided to spice it up a bit. It's not _my_ fault they liked it so much!"

Anna giggled as she followed the children up the stairs to their room.

. . .

"Elsie, look! I just learned a new trick!"

Anna entered the twins' bedroom just in time to see Kris waving his hands in front of Elsie's face, creating streaks of ice in the air as Elsie giggled.

"I wish I had powers like yours," Elsie was saying, making a sudden chill run down Anna's spine. Kris was eight – the same age Elsa was when their parents shut her away. What happened back then? Anna didn't remember anything being wrong – it was just one day they were a normal family and the next day Elsa moved out of their shared room and stopped playing with her.

What could have happened?

And would the same thing happen to Kris?

Anna shook her head as if trying to deny that notion. Kris was happy. Nothing was going to happen, and even if it did, they could handle it.

Right?

Anna cleared her throat. "All right, who's ready for a story?"

"Can you tell us about our aunt?" Elsie asked in an earnest voice, the kind of child intonation that wasn't going to take no for an answer.

"Yeah," said Kris. "Could she do the trick I just did?"

Anna took a deep breath as she gestured for the twins to sit on Elsie's bed. "I'm sure she could. She could certainly do a lot of other stuff."

"I wish we could meet her," said Elsie as she leapt onto the bed.

Anna tried not to think about the last time she saw her sister, but the image of Elsa disappearing forever into the snow insisted on overtaking her mind. "I do too, sweetheart."

"Why did she leave?" Kris asked as he settled himself next to his sister.

"You know why," said Anna, trying to ignore the twist in her stomach. "She thought it was the only way to stop the eternal winter."

"But we've _still_ got snow," Kris persisted.

"Yes, but it was much worse before. At least now we can survive." _Survive like animals hunting for food,_ she secretly thought.

Kris looked down at his hand, where a few snowflakes appeared as he wiggled his fingers. "Do you think _I_ could make a big winter like that too?"

Anna did her best to ignore the tightening of her muscles with little success. "I don't know why you would want to." She attempted to keep her voice lighthearted while her mind was panicking. Why would he ask something like that?

Kris shrugged, waving his hand around and blowing the snowflakes around with it. "Well, no, I don't _want_ to, but that's something I don't get about Aunt Elsa. Why didn't she see how _neat_ these powers are?"

Anna took a deep breath. "Her powers scared her. She worried that she's hurt someone with them." What else could she say? If she emphasized Elsa's fear of her powers too much, that might make Kris scared of his own powers.

Kris tossed up a handful of snow that hovered in the air. "Well _I'm_ not scared."

Anna wasn't sure whether to be relieved or frightened.

. . .

"Kris?" Elsie asked after their mother had left and the room was dark.

"Yeah?" Kris whispered back.

"I wish I had powers like yours and Aunt Elsa's."

There was a moment of awkward silence after that as the boy pondered what to say. "Well . . . it's just how things worked out. I was born with the powers and you weren't."

"I know, I know." Elsie rolled over to face her brother's bed. "Do you think you'd ever get scared of your powers like Aunt Elsa was?"

"No," Kris said almost instantly. "I like having powers."

"But what if you hurt someone like how Aunt Elsa hurt Mom?"

"I _wouldn't."_

"How do you know?"

Kris shot up to a sitting position. "Look, I could fill this whole room with ice and you wouldn't get hurt!"

"Really?" Elsie raised her eyebrow as she sat up as well. "Prove it!"

Kris gave a wide grin, his eyebrows waggling in excitement for the challenge. "Okay, I will!"

. . .

"MOOOOOOOOMMMMM!"

Anna and Kristoff rushed into the twins' bedroom as soon as they heard the horrible scream from their daughter. "Elsie!" Kristoff shouted. "Elsie, are you all right?"

The children were on the floor sitting in a patch of ice, Kris sobbing and mumbling that he was sorry and Elsie gripping her left arm. "What happened?" Anna shouted, diving to the floor and wrapping both her children in her arms, ignoring the ice. "Come on you two, tell me what happened!"

"I-I . . ." Kris sputtered between sobs, ". . . sh-she wanted me to fill the room with ice and . . ."

"What?" Kristoff shouted, sliding down onto the ice next to them. "Kris, what happened?"

Kris responded only in more sobs and Elsie whimpered in pain, still gripping her arm. "Sweetheart, sweetheart," said Anna, stroking her daughter's hair. "please, let me see your arm."

The girl was shaking in her mother's arms as she slowly stuck out her arm.

Which was turning icy blue.

Kristoff screamed, Anna gasped, and Kris reached out to his sister. "Elsie," he sobbed. "Elsie, Elsie, I'm so sorry." He grabbed hold of her frozen pinky finger.

The finger snapped off.


End file.
